Bag feeding means



3 Sheets-Sheet I', l

Foil/(iff INVENTOR fr B /fn/J ATToRNEY Sept'. 151931. H. B. FouLDER BAG FEEDING MEANS Filed March 21, 1936 H. B. FOULDER BAG FEEDING MEANS sept. 15, 1931.

Filed March 21. 1930 3 sheets-sneer 2 INV EN TO R eizry. Falz/(Ier B Y @waf /Lv ATTORNEY Sept. 15, 1931. H. a. FouLDER BAG FEEDING MEANS Filed March 2l. 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR @h/LM l ATTORNEY Patented Slept'. .15', 1.931/

y :UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE #ENTRY B- FQULDR; '9F @straws .CONNECTICUT .BAG FEEDING ,MEANS Application ledvMarch 21, 1930. Serial No. 437,690.

g tus which forms the subjectmatter of my coi ll/ pending application, Serial No. 398,587, filed l Gctober 10, 1929, for bag feedingmeans.

Many rbag ,tying vmachines have associated f therewith a turn-table having a series 'of 1*., equidistant notches about the periphery in ywhich ythe Lpuckered necks ofthe bags to'be tied may be placed and held, the turn-table being rotated step by stept place the notches successively in a'predetermined position relaltive to a bag tying machine .which fastens the Vv'necks of `the Vbags Lheld yin these notches successively `byfmeans ofWire,cord or other bindmat'erial. A machine suited to this 'purpose'and'including aturntable of thecharac- .ter `referredvto is disclosed in .my prior application forimprovements `in' bag tyingjmachines, filed December .14, y1928, Serial fNo.

In my prior application, ASerial No. 398,587,

' Il have disclosed anrapparatushaving a constantly rotating bagy feeding yyvheelfor disk -and two `oscillating feedingwheels or disks adaptedto co-act periodically with the rotating disk to engage a bag disposedbytheoperatory in a suitable'feed channel and to advancelthe'bag oppositefa notch of the ybag holdingturn-table', the bag beingseated home in thisnotch by afollo'wer'orY pusher Which, at ,the propertime, comes into engagement Withthe bag neck from behind. A I

A principal objecty of this invention is to improve uponthe apparatus yand'bag feeding means disclosedk in my said4 co-pending application, Serial No."1398,587 ;"t'o simplify'the mechanism and to render it more efficient and sure in operationgand to provide-bag feeding means of the character described which requires .lessfattentioin care `and precision of movementron the partof the operator, and 5u presents'less 'danger ofthe `operator being injured by careless manipulation in feeding bags to the apparatus. y

' u'lhe objectsfof this invention further include the vprovision of an improved bag receiving guide; means for preventing injury 5`5 to the operator when inserting bags into. the guide; means for advancingbags from the guide to rotating bag feeding means; siniplified and improved bag advancing means; and improved pusher means for seating adfdo vanced bags in their respective notches in the turn-table, the construction and movement of the pusher being such as to eliminate any danger of the pusher striking any advancing or advanced bag on the backward movement 65 of the pusher. Other objects of this invention will 'be in part obvious and ,in part pointed out hereinafter.

This invention, accordingly, consists in the features of construction, combination of ele- 70 ments and arrangement of parts which now yvillbe more particularly set forth and eliempliiied in the accompanying drawings, and Uthe scope of the application of which will be set forth inthe claims which follow.

In yorder to illustrate certain possible embodiments of this invention, attention is hereby directedfto the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application 'and' in which; A l

rF ig. ,f1 is a ,top vieri7 of anapparatus em` bodying my invention showing, in association therewith, a turn-table partly brokenaway; Eig. *2' is a front View of a portion of the mechanism, being the same portion as is 86 v shown in lFigQG;

' Fig. Bis an end View of the apparatus, cerparts being shown in section and VCitnhers being broken'aivay for the sake of clearness; l i F iggi is a sectional viewthrougli the bag 0 receiving guide, andis taken ,onthe line OfFs-l;

` Fig. 5 is a top View of a portion oftheapparatusshcwing the bag advancing meansin A, advanced position; j y .Fig A6 is a top .view of a portion ofthe Japparatusshowing the bag pusher means in yadvanced position; and f Fig. 7 is .a sectional View of a portion of .1,00

' drawings.

the mechanism and is taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 6.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the'several views of the Referring to the drawings, to illustrate one form of bag holding'means with which Y table and driving means therefor is disclosed in my co-pending application, Serial No.`

n a suitable tableor framework, such as'3,is mountedl apair of'guide plates `4 and 5, presenting an elongated guide slot 6v into whichvthe operator may slidethe extended neck of abag 7. The upper surface ofl plate 4is cut away as at 8, and in this recess'. are disposed a plurality of plates 9, preferably having pointed edges 10 presented against av pointed edge 11 formed on plate 5. Plates 9 are guided on plate 4 by meansvof pins 12 secured to plate 4 and ext-ending through notches 13 'formed in plates 9. Plates 9 are resiliently pressed toward plate 5 bynieans of springs 14, which are secured tothe bottom of plate 4, extend through slots in plate 4 and press resiliently against the rear of plates 9. Preferably, plates 9 are movable obliquely. The function of these plates 9 isto hold a bag in the guide securely against dropping out, and at the same time, rendering it easy for the operatorto insert abag neck into the guide. y y

Adjacent the end of this row of plates9, a bridgemember 15 is positioned over the guide slot. .The hand of the'operator is adapted to Vstrike and be stopped by this bridge when a bag is inserted into the Vguide slot. Accordingly, thisbridgenot only prevents the operators hand fromaccidently touching any part v*of the mechanism Yin a Vance of the bridge and'thus prevents possibleinjury to the operator, Vbut also deter.- mines the position of the bag in the guide when it is released by the operator.

A bar 16 is slidably retainedover the plate .4 in a channel provided by two .plates 17 and 18, which are secured to the plate 4. Bar 16' is frictionally engaged in the slot between a lfiange 19 and a friction member 20, which is pressed against the bar 16 by means of a spring 21 disposed between plates 17 and 18 and held in place under pressure by means of set screw 22.

. The forward end of bar 16 has a pivot pin 23, on which is mounted a` lever having an arm 24 provided at its end with bag engaging teeth 25. Bar 16` has stop pins 26 and 27, which vare adapted to be engaged by the heel 28 of the lever to restrict the amount ofmovement of the lever lin either direction of rotation. r

Mechanism is provided for periodically rocking this lever to cause its teeth to engage a bag positioned in the guide and to move this bag forwardly into engagement with bag feeding means, vwhich will be described .hereinafter,then torock lthe lever so as to disengage the teeth from the bag and to then take the lever and slide bar 16 back into initial position. Such mechanism may include a link 29 which connects the heel 28 of lthe lever 24 to one arm-30 of aY bell crank lever the other arm 31 of the bell crank lever being connected to a rod or shaft 32,` which is periodically reciprocated by ,any suitable meansfor i nstance,by` mechanism such as is disclosed in my co-pending application 398,587. f y y Y ,f Y

Positioned to engage abag advanced by the lever 24 is a constantly rotating vdisk. 33, mounted on ashaft 34, and a co-acting disk 35. mounted on a swinging bracket 36, this Vbracket being pivotally mounted on a pin 37. Disk 35-is continuously pressed against the periphery of rotating disk 33 by means of a spring 38 which, at yone end is secured to the framework 3 and at its other end to a boss 36 formed on bracket 36.

Disk 33 may be constantly rotated by means of a constantly rotating shaft 39, which has a bevel gear 40 meshing with a bevel gear Y 41 secured to shaft 34.

f C'o-acting disks 33 and 35 are adapted to grip a bag'advanced thereto by the lever 24, and to feed this bag through the disks and adjacentY the notch'2 of the turn-table 1, which has been placed in position to receive this bag. Asthe. bag is lfed through the disks 33 and 35, it presses-against and moves forwardly a lever 42, which-isv pivoted on a pin 43 carried .ontheforwardend of plate 17 and is subject to the resilient action of a spring 44, which is secured at one end to the lever 42, and at its other end-to a pin 45 mounted on plate 17.

The function of lever 42 is to prevent the bag Y from falling Vdownwardly out of the apparatus after it hasb'eenfed beyond the feeding disks 33 and 35.

Y which the forward portion 46 is pivoted as at 49. Arm48 is secured toa shaft 50,which may be rocked'periodically'by means of a reciprocating shaft 51 whichis connected to Vthe shaft by means of a leverj52. `The shaft 51 may be reciprocated by any suitable mechanism, not shown, such, for instance, as that When the pusher -arm 48 is moved forwardly, its forward end is first pivoted into 'extendingpositiom and when the pu-sher arm `48 `is 'retracted` the forward end 46 is first pivote@ away from the path traversed by thefbags To' this end a lever 53 is loosely `mounted, on shaft 50. Preferably, suitable friction means are provided Yto restrain moveme/ntjof arm 53 when shaft 50 rotates, although possibly the'weightof arm 53 is sufficient for the purpose. The opposite end of lever 53 is connected by means of a link 54 to a heel 55 provided on forward pusher porshown inn-1y cci-pending application, Serial ltion 46. Forward and rear stop lugs 56 and 57 are provided on pusher arm 48 for arm 53.

The action of the pusher mechanism is as follows: l/Vhen the pusher is in fully retracted position and its forward end 46 is adjusted on a'rm 48 away from the bag channel, arm

' 53 will be disposed against stop pin 56. On

initial movement, the pusher arm 48 will move forwardly, while arm 53 remains stationary until engaged by stop lug 57, thus moving forward portion 46 on arm 48toward the bag channel, into the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 6. The pusher then continues to move forwardly to the end of its movement into position shown in full lines in Fig. 6, taking arm 53 along due to the engagement of lug 57 therewit l/Vhen -shaft 50 rotates in the reverse direction, arm 53 will remain stationary until engaged by lug 56. Due to this relative movement between members 48 and 53, the forward end 46 of the pusher will be pivoted on arm 48 away from the bag channel as the pusher andarm 53 are taken back to initial posit-ion. y

As the pusher advances it engages a bag fed through disks 33 and 35 and pushes the bag into the notch in the turn-table, positioned to receive the bag. The pusher pucker-s and compresses the bag neck into the notch and maintains engagement with the bag neck` during the movement of the turntable which takes the bag neck behind the fixed plates 47 which then hold the bag in the notch. Because ofthe lost motion connection betweeny arms 48 and 53, end 46 of the pusher may follow the movement of the turn-table even before arm 48 draws bac-k. It will be noted that when the pusher is retracted its forward end 46 cannot engage or touch any bag that is passing through the apparatus for delivery into a subsequent notch in the turn-table.

In order to insure positive engagement of the advancing member 24 with bags placed in the guideway, and to protect the operatthe retaining members 47.

bags with Vnecks extended into the guide,

preferablyadvancing them until his hand strikes the bridge l5. Thereupon, the advancingy member Q4, carried on slide -16 engages the bag and advances it into engagement with the bag feeding disks 33 and 35.

Preferably, the .teeth 25 of the bag advancing member are inclined forwardly, so that in the event the disks 33 and 35 grip a bag before member Q4 has been disengaged therefrom, the disks will merely pull the bag out of engagement with the teeth and the feeding will not be interrupted, nor will the bag be torn by the teeth. When the bag has been fed by the disks 33 and 35, the pusher member' engages the bag from behind and seats it in the awaiting notch of the turn-table, maintaining it-s rengagement with bag neck until the turn-table has disposed the bag behind Meanwhile, the bag is prevented from fallinfY out of place by reason of its engagement with lever 42. As aforestated, neither the pusher nor the advancing element 24 can interfere in their backward movements with any bag advancing in the apparatus, since each is withdraw out of the path of advancing bags during their backward movement. It will be apparent that the operator may feed bags just as fast as they are taken away by the adtion could be made without depart/ine' from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that the subject matter contained in the above description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings shall be'interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

'Wh at I claim is:

l. ln an apparatus of the character described, in combination, two guide members `providing guide passage between them, and

bag` engaging plates slidably carried on one of said members and resiliently pressed edgewise toward the other guide member.

'2. In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, means for holding a bag in a predetermined location in the apparatus, and means'for engaging and advancparatus, and means tor engaging and advaiicing a bag from such location, the advancing means including a slide bar, a bag gripper movable on the slide bar into and out ot bag gripping position and movable with the slide vbar to advance a gripped bag and to return to initial position, means for reciprocating the slide bar and moving the gripper thereon, and means Atrictionally resisting reciprocation of the slide bar. A

4. ln an apparatus of the character described, bag advancing means, including, in combination, a slide bar, a gripper pivotally vmounted on the slide bar, and means whereby Y the gripper is irst pivoted on the slide bar into bag gripping position and then is advanced with the slide bar to advance a gripped bag, and at the end of the advance movement -is lpivoted on the slide bar to release the gripped bag and then returned with the slide bar to initial position.

o. .In an apparatus of the character described, in combination, two plates providing a bag passage between them, a gripper provided vvith bag engaging teeth mounted on one of said plates for movement acrosssaid passage, and a member on the kother plate presenting a groove opposite and in alignment With the teeth of the gripper.

6. In an apparatus of the character described, bag advancing means, including, in combination, a slide bar, a gripper pivotally mounted on the slide bar, and means, including an o cillating lever connected,v to the gripper, for periodically pivoting the gripper on the slide bar and reciprocating the slide bar. Y

7'. In an apparatus oi the character described, in combination, means providing a bag passage through the apparatus, and means, including a resiliently yielding linger disposed across said passage and adapted to be engaged by a bag ted along said passage, to restrain said bag 'from falling downward out of said passage. n

8. ln an apparatus of the character described, in combination, a pusher including a main arm liavingan endportion pivoted thereto, means for oscillating the pusher, and means for pivoting the end portion vvitli respect to the main arm upon initial movement ot' the main arm in either direction.

9. kln ank apparatus of the character described, in combination, a pusher including a March, 1930,

' HENRY B. FOULDER. 

